Saturday, January 29, 2011

"Exotic" Animals?

Wednesday evening, about 8 pm, I was driving down Loop Road when I spied a critter scurrying along the ground, next to a fence. Even though I only caught a glimpse of the animal I knew it was unusual. It turned down a driveway, and I quickly maneuvered my car so my headlights gave me a clear view of this cat-sized creature with a naked, pinkish tail darting away and into the darkness.

It was a possum. That may not seem so unusual...except I had never heard of possums on Ocracoke. Maybe some of our island readers will share more news about possums on the island.

In the past a number of other animals have been introduced to Ocracoke, or found there way here by accident. Most are fairly new arrivals. They include:

nutria, or Russian rats (long-time residents of Ocracoke)

rabbits (they've been around quite a while also)

minks (they make appearances along the highway every now and then)

squirrels (they're all over the village...have been for about 10 years)

pheasants (I think our local hunters dispatched them some time ago)

deer (I haven't seen any in a few years, but they may survive)

racoons (apparently they found their way to the island several years ago)

bears (they swim over to Ocracoke once in a while, but, thankfully, never stay long)

27 comments:

Watch out Mr. Possum...you may end up as #12 Road kill....I hope it's a "Mr." and not a "Mrs." Otherwise, you may be seeing a lot of possums in the future, Philip.

With all the cats on the island and bowls of cat food sitting around, that possum will have plenty to eat. I learned (the hard way) not to leave food outside (scraps, pet food, etc) a few summers ago because a possum will quickly become a unwelcome guest!

Of course you forgot to mention the most exotic introduction to the island, "The Tourist!" These come in large numbers when they invade the island. The locals however have learned to enjoy them for the most part and have made concessions to make them feel comfortable. The tourist seems to be tolerable because they only come in the warmer months and allow the locals to recover during the winter.

I'm told that Hyde Co. mainland (that's the county that Ocracoke is in) has as many, maybe more, bears per square mile than the Great Smokey Mountains. I don't know if this is true or not, but I do know that Hybe Co. has a large bear population...and black bears are known to be good swimmers. If they don't swim straight across (and remember, there are many shoals and sandbars to rest on) maybe they come from down around Cedar Island and make their way up Core Banks and across from Portsmouth Island.

What about snakes? What kinds are there on Ocracoke? Also,during our visit last November, we went to Springer's Point for the first time. It was so beautiful, but the weather was a little chilly, so it was quick trip. I'm looking forward to seeing it again when we come back in March. There was a rusty pipe sticking up out of the ground near the water. Do you have any idea what that might be?

* We do have snakes -- small green snakes (they're cute and fun to pick up, but they do have a slight odor), Carolina water snakes (I've seen them at Springer's Point), black snakes, and others. I'm told that we do not have any resident populations of poisonous snakes, but that occassional cottonmouth water moccasins find their way to the island.

*I'm not sure about the rusty iron pipe. I can't remember seeing it.

*I think today is the last day of waterfowl hunting. Hunters come for ducks and geese. You can see a number of duck blinds out in the sound. Ocracoke has several native guides. Check here for more information: http://www.hydecounty.org/guide_services.asp

Possums are routine here in Ill-my husband shot 6 of them this winter! We think they were wintering under our screen porch as they would make very wierd noises when we stepped out there. We finally turned the lights on our there and found each sitting on top of an old bench used as a winter platform birdfeeder. He slid open the sliding bedroom door and kaboom-4 in one night! Haven't seen any since. We have also had infestations of racoons and don't usually fill the feeders in the warmer months as they seem to be drawn to them. Thanks so much for the snow pics-it truly looked like a winter wonderland. Ours here has been wintry but not like NYC thankfully!

You are so right about the bear population. In addition to Hyde county, Beaufort county also has some black bears.

Years ago, my mother-in-law, from Belhaven, noticed on display in a local restaurant, a "stuffed" black bear cub which was standing and had been made into a planter. The story goes a vehicle had hit the baby cub by accident and the owners of the restuarant decided to have the baby cub on display just as patrons entered the restaurant. It was quite a conversation starter. The bear stood in an upright positon and the front paws were able to hold a little shelf, I believe, and then a plant was put on it.

My mother-in-law always wanted one for herself which I thought rather interesting! Oh well, just a memory to share. My goodness, and to think this discussion about bears (and other exotic critters) all came about because Philip spotted a possum on Ocracoke Island last Wednesday night! :)

I was talking with Clifton Garrish this afternoon. He told me he's heard of a rattlesnake washing up on Ocracoke during a storm. I think it was dead. I don't think anyone needs to worry about poisonous snakes on the island. I've been tromping around in the marsh and wetlands many times without incident.

May we have a moment of silence for the Opposums that were murdered in ILLinois. Possums eat rats, roof rats, cockroaches, bugs carrion --they are scavengers. I am shocked that this animal was shot. what a waste of ammunition. Too lazy to use a have-a heart cage and do the humane act. The plentiful food source allowed the animal to breed in the area the bird seed the short gestation period makes for a population boom if you are feeding them stop putting food out and THEY WILL LEAVE it is that simple.I feel sorry for the poster that felt the killing of a sitting duck was something to brag about. Now I guess disposing of the dead animals was a fun job or did you have a pot luck supper?

Thank you for the kind words about my first book. I have been working on a second book (based on the Ocracoke Around Creek Ghost & History Tour), but I keep getting distracted by other projects. Maybe your comment will spur me on to more productive work. Thanks again.

That's funny! About a week ago we were sitting in the ferry line at Hatteras and I saw a possum run out from between some cars in front of me and run under the ferry office. It was strange that the possum would be out around several cars and people during the day.

A word of caution, based on the comment regarding the possum seen at the Hatteras ferry line: any wild animal (mammals only)displaying tame or less than wild tendencies needs to be avoided because of the possibility of rabies. Do not approach, catch, or pet any such critter. I don't know if rabies is as prevalent on the Outer Banks as it is here in the Piedmont but better safe than sorry.

Is here animal control services on the island? If the animal is rabid well the authorities ought to be involved as yes possums are carriers and well the disease could spread to other say domesticated animals -- err on the side of caution and alert the animal control officer to be on the alert. with twitter and facebook no doubt the location and whereabouts could be engaged to facilitate and quell any worries

the comment about the possum running about during daylight is highly irregular. nocturnal animals seen during the day can be a case of rabies as this animal behavior is not normal ---are they not seeking water ? if an animal in the early stages is developing a full blown case to be come rabid why wait-- at least monitor the situation instead of saying oh how cute a possum

Tou·ché, Sundae. Of course you are correct, though I am reminded of Humpty Dumpty: "'When I use a word,' Humpty Dumpty said, in rather a scornful tone, 'it means just what I choose it to mean — neither more nor less.'" (Through the Looking Glass, by Lewis Carroll).

Village Craftsmen Links

Ocracoke Island Sunset

Visit us on Ocracoke Island

Out & About with Lou Ann

Lou Ann in Prague

Out and About

Lou Ann spends much of the summer on Ocracoke, and makes frequent visits throughout the year. She enjoys making short videos as she goes "out and about" around the island and elsewhere. She posts her videos on her blog. You can watch them here: